Iniqua Praxis: Social and criminal liability among caporali and agricultural entrepreneurs in the exploitation of irregular migrant farm workers

Abstract

This article examines the distribution of social and criminal liability within the caporalato system by drawing on qualitative interviews with migrant farm workers, farmers, agricultural entrepreneurs, and caporali in southern Italy. It identifies three core dynamics: the “Search for Caporali,” where entrepreneurs actively seek informal intermediaries; the “Creation of Caporali,” where employers promote trusted workers into recruitment roles; and “Coercion and Collusion with Authorities,” which deters reporting through intimidation and institutional complicity. The findings suggest that agricultural entrepreneurs bear greater responsibility for labor exploitation, due to their structural power, capacity to externalize risk, and active role in organizing and legitimizing informal labor arrangements within broader systems of rural political economy and labor governance.